


Never Judge A Book By Its Cover

by OyoaOverson



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Head Boy/Head Girl, Multi, Realizing Feelings, Slytherin Seduction
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-15
Updated: 2016-04-15
Packaged: 2018-06-02 09:57:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,247
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6561916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OyoaOverson/pseuds/OyoaOverson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hermione is done dealing with those annoying Slytherins. That Blaise Zabini and Draco Malfoy. But is it all as it seems?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello all. This is a story I started ages ago but kind of gave up on. Recently started rewriting it and decided to put it here as well.

She cannot stand him! Him or that other git who call themselves the ‘Princes of Slytherin.’ Well to be fair, they don’t call themselves by that title but rather all of their little fangirls and just about everyone else- but that doesn’t matter! What matters is that she is furious with those two. How dare they walk around as if everyone will bow and step out of their way. Those two smug Slytherins have ruined two months of research and work. All that and she was blamed for ruining three books. BOOKS for Christ’s sake! She wouldn’t do that – _especially_ since she needed them.

                No, those two couldn’t move out of the way when she _clearly_ could not see in front of her. She had many books and papers piled high. And what do they do? Bump into her and knock over a first year who just happened to be holding a potion that was made incorrectly. Not only did said potion scorch three of the books, but caused a hole in the middle of the hallway causing a huge pileup. And what do they do? _Smirk._ That smirk that made half of the girls stop and sigh. Then they have the gall to tell her to “Watch where her dirty feet lead her,” so she “won’t cause such a huge mess next time.”

                As Head Girl she had to stay calm and not yell at them in front of all the other students. But as soon as that Blaise Zabini steps through that door, he is going to get it!

                Hermione will never understand how that arrogant Slytherin was made Head Boy. Before this year, she had never noticed the smooth talking Italian. She knew that he was in her year, in Slytherin, and sometimes seen around with Malfoy and his group. Who would have known that he was up for the position of Head Boy? It all came as a surprise when it was announced. But who was she to be questioning Dumbledore’s choice? That Zabini sure was a mysterious-

                Speak of the devil; he walked through the door just as she was thinking of him. Right on time. Hermione opened her mouth to give him what was coming when he gave her _that_ smile. “Granger,” he said with a nod.

                She froze. Even she had to admit there was a charm-

                “You may want to close your mouth. Unless you were planning on putting it to use…” he responded, raising an eyebrow. And with that she closed her mouth and clenched her fists. His voice was something she would never get used to. So smooth, charming… until he says something like _that_ , then the spell that was cast over her disappears.

                “You-you GIT,” she finally managed. He just smirked again as he plopped into a chair. “Don’t you ignore me! I am fed up with you and Malfoy. You are abusing the power you were given-“

                Zabini looked into her eyes and her tongue froze again. _Darn it, how does he do that?_ “I have never, as you say, ‘abused’ my power Granger.”

                So calm. So collected. A brief moment of understanding came over Hermione as the thought about how many admirers brushed her mind. That accent was enough to make any girl weak in the knees, and she wasn’t even fond of the guy. “I actually came to see if you had finished cleaning,” Zabini added, bringing Hermione back out her thoughts.

                _I’m not sure if I should take that as an insult or a nice offer to help – probably the former,_ she thought. Hermione debated in her mind about the proper action to take, but she could feel her anger building and her annoyance getting the best of her. So she did what she believed was the best course of action – she turned her head and prepared to leave the room. She was clearly not going to get anything done this way. At this rate, she was going to have a repeat of something that would be considered wrong to do: smack him. She had slapped Malfoy before and now she wanted to do it to him. But when she did it to Malfoy it seemed much more justified. Here it is her just letting her emotions getting the best of her and she was not going to get anything done this way. As she closed the door, she heard a soft chuckle that made her grit her teeth. That insufferable-

                As soon as she entered her room in the Gryffindor tower she headed to her bed and sat down. Putting her head in her hands, she wondered on what she was going to do about this whole situation. She had to figure out a plan of action. Sort herself out. First she would have to redo her report, but that was near impossible without those books. So she would have to address the books because not only did she need them, they were an amazing source of information. Plus they were hard to get in the first place! And thanks to those no-good Slytherins she was stuck.

Those devious, stuck-up, no-good charmers! Those foul mouthed, beautiful, bloody gits!

                Hermione paused as the words replayed in her mind. Wait a moment… what did she call them? Charmers? Beautiful? She shook her head. No. No no no no no, she can’t- but there were more words that came to mind to describe them that she did not want. Smooth. Handsome. Graceful.

                She sat straight up and looked around as if expecting someone to come out and show that they were putting these thoughts into her mind. Confirming that that was a ridiculous idea, her hand went to her forehead to check her temperature. There must have been something in that potion. That could be the only explanation.

She lowered her hand, confirming that she did not have a fever so she wasn’t delirious.  What was in that potion? She immediately made plans to go find out.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who are wondering – I have made it where the Head Boy and Head Girl do not share the same ‘dormitory’. As much as I love that set up, I thought it would be set up differently and probably still with their own respective houses. But I have hopefully added enough of a twist that it works out well still. But you won’t see it until a few more chapters. Thank you.

Hermione pondered about where she would want to start. What could she possibly do to find out what was affecting her and how to reverse it? Well seeing as it was a younger student’s potion, starting in the Potions classroom would not be completely off, but then she took into consideration of the Potions Master himself. Professor Snape would probably be not much help. She could almost hear him saying “Miss Granger, I am unable to keep track of all the potions done incorrectly,” in that slightly slower drawl of a voice that he has, then continue to blame so-and-so house while giving good examples of Slytherins. She did not need to hear that nonsense right now (or any time really).

So next would be –

The hallway! Of course she could start there!

Having decided a course of action, she quickly left her room while still in uniform. If someone was trying to get her attention, she did not notice. She was on a mission. Hermione made mental notes as she tried to remember and focus on details from the whole incident while trying to ignore how the two Slytherins made her blood boil. She shouldn’t be this angry really – but books were damaged in the process! Precious resources and if they had just –

Now was not the time to go into that argument again. What’s done is done and now she had to move on. She reached down subtly to make sure her want was with her when she a voice came from beside one of the many suits of armor that was on the way to the disaster zone. “Where are you going Granger?”

She stopped walking and took a deep breath and calmed herself down. He would not get the best of her. She turned to face him but did not offer a smile. “What do you want Malfoy,” she asked as slightly annoyance entered her tone.

“I was just wondering where you were off to in such a hurry,” he replied as he gave a smirk while raising an eyebrow.

“Nothing that concerns you or your ‘mudblood’ remarks. I was hoping that I’d be able to do an errand in silence without the useless noise that you seem to deem important.”

“And what, pray tell, is this useless noise you’re talking about,” Malfoy asked as he crossed his arms.

“Your voice,” she calmly stated as if it were obvious. She turned to walk away from him, a lightly smile on her lips. It felt good to have a good quip once in a while and seeing as Malfoy wasn’t offering a response, she believed that he was speechless or angry so he couldn’t retaliate. What she didn’t see that his smirk was still upon his face as his eyes watched her back as she walked away. All she knew was that she felt a little better as she put some distance between her and the ferret.

* * *

 

Two arms encircled Draco’s shoulders as he watched her disappear in the direction she was heading. “That was… going according to plan,” Blaise stated as he rested his chin on Draco’s shoulders, his smile hidden behind his arms.

“Yes,” Draco drawled before turning his head to look at the beautifully sculpted Italian. “Your turn.”

“I think I’ll wait a while. She just dealt with me and she will be thinking about me for a while. It makes it better if I wait while she enjoys the closeness we shared earlier.”

Draco gave a slight chuckle. “You sound pretty sure of yourself.”

Blaise kissed Draco’s cheek. “I have good reason to,” he replied as he pulled away.

Draco reached up to wipe his cheek. “You know Blaise, if you keep this up and if I didn’t know you any better, I’d think you fancied me.”

Blaise smirked. “Good think you know me then.”

Draco mere shook his head as he left, leaving Blaise to his scheming.

* * *

 

Hermione took in the sight before with a huge amount of disbelief.  No one would have believed it really. Right where there used to be a huge mess with a giant hold, a potion splattered around, and pages of the books flying about there was-

Nothing. Not a single thing out of place. Whoever was in charge wasted no time cleaning up. It was spotless and looked like there was never an incident here. And this fact made her groan. Now how was she supposed to get her hands on a sample of that potion? She could not think of another way to figure out what was in it and what was causing these disturbing thoughts.

Never one to give up right away, she took another look around hoping they had missed a spot. She checked under furniture, under rugs, around anything hoping that it wasn’t just magical perfection. When she couldn’t find a blasted thing, she did something she hadn’t done since she was a young child; she stomped her foot in frustration. There wasn’t even any ruble from where the hole was! “What am I to do now,” she moaned aloud.

“Need some help Granger?”

Hermione quickly spun around to see the first pain approaching her. His face was truly beginning to annoy her. Well not really, it was quite – Oh my God! “What are you doing here Zabini?”

“I came to see if you need help with anything,” he stated normally as if it were normal for him to offer help.

She held her head up as she looked at him questionably. “No thank you Zabini. I am perfectly capable of handling this on my own thank you.”

“And what exactly are you doing,” Zabini asked.

Hermione paused; this time making sure her mouth was closed as she debated about what to tell him. She had to make it look like she was annoyed or something with having to resort to tell him. Because she had to make her story believable. She would never live it down if he knew the real reason why she was here.

“I’m looking to see if I can find a sample of the potion. I need to figure out how to repair the books that were damaged.”

Blaise – err, Zabini – raised an eyebrow as if to question her.

Hermione sighed. “I need those books for research,” she answered as if it were obvious. And it was a pretty believable answer. She had been seen with tons of books and papers and information right before this whole thing so it made perfect sense. It may not be why she was really looking for the potion, but it wasn’t completely off. She hoped that Zabini wouldn’t somehow see through her.

“Is that really the reason why you’re here,” he asked, making it sound as if it weren’t a question at all.

She cleared her throat and crossed her arms defensively as she rested her weight on her right leg. _There we go, the normal stance for looking annoyed._ “Yes,” she enunciated as if there wasn’t any other answer. “I just need to find a sample of that younger student’s potion-“

“Then why start here,” Zabini interrupted.

She resisted the urge to huff. “Because going to see Snape will probably be of no help to me. With that knowledge, the scene of the accident is the second best option.” She had to remind herself to calm down and keep her voice down. Fighting with the Head Boy will get her nowhere, so she will not be the one to start it. But it brought more questions, like why was being around him bringing her on edge like this? It didn’t seem reasonable to be this annoyed and this angry just by being in his presence – and of that of Malfoy.

She almost got caught up in her thoughts and barely caught Zabini nodding his head. It was almost as if agreeing she had a point. He turned slowly and started to walk where she had just been searching. All of her was wishing that he would just leave. This was becoming more awkward – or just harder – with him being around. After his eyes brushed around the area, he turned back to her with that look on his face that made her just want to make it disappear. _Do he and Malfoy only know how to smirk? They need to find new expressions._

“What if,” he started as he got closer to her.  Hermione had not expected it and took a step back as he continued, “I ask Snape for a sample. Being from his house, it wouldn’t be nearly as hard for me.”

Hermione paused and could not help as suspicion took over her. “And why would you help me Mr. Zabini,” she asked, waiting to hear his demands.

He just smiled.

“What if I needed those books as well Granger? You aren’t the only one working and studying in this school. Though you may not think so, others are trying to learn as well. We just can’t get the books we need because a certain Head Girl keeps hogging them.”

This was not what she had been expecting. A light blush hit her face as she tried to find the ability to speak. “V-very well. Well put,” she muttered. She raised her right hand to her temple as she tried to figure out any other motives that he may have, but she honestly couldn’t think of a single thing. With a slight sigh, she surrendered. “Fine,” she replied. “If that is truly the reason then well… will you – _please_ – ask Snape about it?”

“Nice to see you so articulate Granger,” Blaise stated. Hermione could not stop herself from rolling her eyes and just turned her head as she recrossed her arms. Blaise gave a farewell nod as he turned towards the dungeons. “By the way Granger, standing there like that shows how nicely shaped your legs are,” he called over his shoulder as he continued to his destination.

Hermione snapped into a straight position with her hands to her side as she opened her mouth to say something. She immediately closed it thinking better of it and just clenched her fists, not wanting to mess up this opportunity. If she was going to get the rare chance that Zabini was actually going to help her and be useful, she better just accept it and Shut. Her. Mouth.

She watched until he had disappeared down the stair when another thought hit her. She realized that he never said when he and where he would give her the sample – or even that he would give it to her. He just stated that he’d ask for it. She only requested that he _ask Snape about it_. Seeing the loophole that could possibly happen, she started to pace. It was a few moments but she finally made up her mind. She took a deep breath and reconsidered her options once more before deciding that this was what she needed to do.

She went and quietly followed Zabini down into the dungeons.


	3. Chapter 3

She was starting to wonder if this was the proper way to do this as she quietly hid behind pillars and anything that would block her from view. Constantly listening for other students and hoping no one catches her, Hermione wondered why she as she continued to follow Zabini. He had a head start but she was able to catch up quickly. With a purpose in mind, she was determined to get what she needed.

Following him was not bad. He walked smoothly – almost in a way that deemed it near impossible to describe for a guy. It wasn’t just his posture but a sense of confidence that seemed to come from him. But unlike Malfoy, he did not scream cocky. Self-assured maybe, but not cocky. But what Hermione normally noticed the most about him was his eyes. With his olive skin and dark chocolate hair, his sky blue eyes almost seemed to pierce though and beg for attention. His physical appearance was mostly because of the Italian heritage on his mother’s side, but his eyes belonged to his English father; something all the girls will happily thank his father for. That was how he seduced most of the girls in Hogwarts. Just one glance and –

Hermione froze mid-step, her mind realizing what just happened. While she thought about his appearance she had actually been checking out Zabini. She lightly touched the back of her hand to her cheeked to see if it felt warm or flushed. She could not – no, she WOULD NOT – check out Zabini. Never on purpose. She had to be sick. She _had to._ Otherwise there was no other explanation for this crazy behavior. She needed to reverse this soon before the effects were permanent. At this rate she may even start liking Blaise-

Oh God no. And it’s Zabini! She could not help the shudder that ran through her. Ew.

She was trying to convince herself that she was okay when she noticed that Zabini had already entered the Potions classroom. As quietly as she could, she went near the door and peered into the crack to listen to the conversation. “Mister Zabini, pleasure to see you but may I ask what you’re doing here outside of class,” Snape droned as soon as he spotted the Head Boy.

Hermione tried to get a little closer without alerting them to her presence. She couldn’t quite tell exactly everything that was going on, but it would work for now.  She almost held her breath out of fear from not wanting to be heard.

Zabini gave a slight bow as he greeted his the professor. “Good day House Master.” Snape turned his head as one of his eyebrows rose in curiosity. Oh no, he was getting a little suspicious. “I came as a request of someone to find out about the potion that had caused the… mess this afternoon.” Zabini had paused as he tried to find the proper word to call the disaster that had to have reached Snape by now.

Snape nodded, showing he understood. “May I ask who lacks the bravery to ask for this information themselves,” he asked as his cloak bellowed around him as he sat down.

Zabini smirked – thought Hermione couldn’t see it – as he stayed silent.

“I see,” Snape replied. “In that case, first let me inform you that it was not the potion that caused the disaster. That first year was delivering a potion to one of the other professors for me. Seems to be problems with a tough patch in the forest and I thought that I would lend that so-called mistake to help fix it.” He was grading but stopped when he noticed Zabini was standing there waiting for him to continue the story. “Turns out that a third year Hufflepuff was reading the wrong direction in their book and made a different potion than required. But I must say, for a Hufflepuff he didn’t do it badly for once. Not wanting to waste a rare moment of a correctly brewed potion, I sent it to Hagrid. Unfortunately the ‘mess’ was caused by Miss Granger foolishly making it hard for herself to maneuver. Having a nose buried deep in a book can make one… make a misstep. There lies the true cause of the disaster.”

Zabini chuckled at this and Snape gave a smirk of approval. Hermione resisted saying anything – or so she had thought – when Snape’s eyes snapped to her direction. She covered her mouth realizing that she had indeed made a noise. She had truly messed up and now-

“Come in Miss Granger,” Snape beckoned while sounding bored.

Hermione nervously stepped into the now fully opened doorway. Now what she going to do? This was a very awkward situation. _What in the world am I going to tell Professor Snape?_ “S-sorry Professor,” she started, nearly wincing hearing the stutter in her own words, “but I had heard that Zabini had come down here and-“ she paused feeling another pair of eyes on her and knowing that it was Zabini himself that was giving her attention. She glanced over to see what he was doing to find him in a very casual pose with his arms crossed and leaning against Snape’s desk. Merlin he should not look that good at a moment like this. She swallowed as she tried to come up with an excuse. “A-and I wanted to remind him that we have a meeting later.”

As soon as it left her mouth she regretted it. She should have stuck to some sort of story to see if Zabini had found out what the potion was so she could start repairing the books – the same story she gave to Zabini himself. That would have made more sense and even though it may have indeed made her look a little like a coward, it was better than this very uncomfortable situation. She didn’t realize it, but she had lightly bit her lip – an action that Zabini had caught.

He just gave a nod as he smirked, as if accepting that as real while knowing the full truth that she was full of it.

“Message received. You may go now,” Snape replied, dismissing her with a wave of his hand.

Hermione nodded and quickly turned to leave the suffocating room.

“By the way Miss Granger, the potion is on page three hundred forty-seven,” Snape added as he returned to grading scrolls. She blushed knowing that he had completely figured out her lie and realized instantly that she was the one seeking the information. She scurried out with Zabini chuckling.

“Well, thank you Professor,” he said as he watched Hermione’s retreated back leave the doorway. Snape just glanced up for a moment then waved his hand again to dismiss him then returned to grading.

* * *

 

Embarrassment. That was all that Hermione was feeling at this moment. Not only had she been caught eavesdropping, but she had been caught using Zabini as a messenger to get an answer that she had not tried to retrieve herself making her look cowardly and nothing like what Gryffindors were known for. But that was not the biggest problem that she was facing right now. Even though it should be the biggest thing on her mind right now all she could focus on was the fact that she knew exactly which potion had spilt that afternoon and caused the disaster – and there was no way that it was responsible for her thoughts. She had read all of her schoolbooks at least three times and she remembered the potion that was on page three hundred and forty-seven of the third year book. There was not even a chance that the blasted thing touched her. If it had, the floor would not have been the only thing with a hole in it. Seeing as she had no obvious marks or holes or proof of any sort of contact in her uniform or on her skin, she knew that it did not touch her. Just the books and the floor.

Panic and worry started to come into her mind. Why in the world was she having these thoughts? Yes, she knew Zabini and Malfoy were quite handsome – almost every girl and woman in this school would agree – but she had never noticed before. At least not in the way she had been noticing recently.

Had she?

No! No, no, no. Oh goodness, these thoughts are starting to corrupt and confuse her already! She started to tell herself to not panic when another voice cut through her thoughts.

“Don’t panic? What for Granger?”

Hermione squeaked lightly in surprise and instinctively covered her eyes. Oh no. Not _now._ Of all moments why did he have to show up _now_? She didn’t mean to say it out loud and of course he had to be there to hear it. When will this blasted day end?

Malfoy just looked at her with amused confusion, enjoying the sight in front of him. “Does my-“

“Malfoy,” Hermione interrupted when she definitely knew it was him and not just a figure of her imagination. She could recognize his voice from anywhere and the goose bumps on her skin confirmed that it wasn’t something she was making up. She slowly moved her hands down and turned to face him. “What are you doing?”

“I should be asking you that,” he replied as he leaned his shoulder against the wall.

“What do you mean,” she asked tired of playing games right now. Malfoy motioned to something behind her and she surrendered to look at what he was directing her to. She stood straighter in shock and her eyes slightly grew once she realized where she was. Of all the darn places right now, she had to be in front of-

“The Slytherin Common Room Granger. We tend to be here often. Now the question is if you are here to see someone,” Malfoy stated as a he covered a laugh with his smirk. “You scared of going near our common room? Is that why you are telling yourself to not panic?” He was clearly making fun of her and enjoying this predicament. She has to make up yet another excuse for her actions today. Does this make it three or four? Almost, if not already, a new record for her if her memory serves her correctly.

“I thought I heard noises over here. Slytherins are known for constantly snogging in the hallways. I just wanted to catch someone-“

“Ah, you like watching-“

“To give them DETENTION,” Hermione snapped.

Malfoy’s smirk grew, to Hermione’s irritation. “I do believe I have found Miss Goodie-two-shoe’s secret.”

“You have not!”

Malfoy immediately straightened as if he was interested in a very new discovery. “Oh, but you do have one. Interesting.”

Hermione blushed, realizing that her statement did make it appear as if she had a secret she was hiding and that she had essentially put herself in a corner. Not wanting to somehow let Malfoy know what she has been trying to ‘fix’ about her thoughts, she decided the best thing to do right now was retreat. She just let this argument go and focused on getting out of there and away from this dreaded area. She managed to walk away without Malfoy pushing her any further or fight and that surprised her a bit.

“I’ll find out what it is Granger,” he calmly stated as she found her way out.

_The hell you will,_ she thought. _I will make sure that no one ever knows of these thoughts and attractions. And I will make sure that they will go away._

He watched her a moment longer to see her reaction then muttered something as he entered the Slytherin Common Room. She missed the look he had and it was for the better. It would have worried her.

But she was too caught up in her thoughts and wondering what it was about today and why Slytherins – two in particular – were all about pushing the wrong buttons with her today. Hermione covered her mouth, nearly praying that Malfoy and Zabini wouldn’t find out about what she has been struggling with. If they ever knew how she found them attractive and how it kept distracting her, she would never hear the end of it.

How could this be? How could she be so attracted to two that were almost her arch enemies? Why was her mind sometimes trying to find excuses for them because of their looks? Yes, she had to admit it. Sometimes she wanted to excuse some of their behavior towards her and she just wanted to give in-

That is why she blushed when Zabini got a little close to her when she was in the hallway looking for a potion sample. Why she was caught so off guard now with her little tiff with Draco- NO! Malfoy- a moment ago. She just –

There was no way she had grown, what was that word that keeps get thrown about when girls talk, ‘crushes’ on the two most arrogant, stuck-up, pig-headed people in the school? They aren’t even nice to her in the slightest of ways.

How in the world can she have a growing attraction to Blaise Zabini and Draco Malfoy?


	4. Chapter 4

No. No. God please no. She doesn’t fancy them. No. She is not attracted to their physical attributes and personalities in the slightest. Hermione has been telling herself this all night as she tossed and turned in her bed. It was almost as if they were haunting her at this point for they keep appearing every stinking time she closes her eyes. Their stance, their smirks, their eyes…. She shuddered as she continued to chant that she doesn’t fancy them. But if she wasn’t doing this whole ‘falling in love’ bit – which she isn’t – then she it has to be something else. She had come to a different conclusion but it did not make her feel any better.

She is just physically attracted to them. Just physically. And that is known as Lust. Just pure lust.

She shuddered again, for this thought made her feel… well it just downright made her feel dirty. But even she had to admit it is hard to completely ignore them. She was just a normal female and could not help it. They were gorgeous. She isn’t blind. And she could not fool herself that hanging around with boys all day would make her immune. No. Blaise and Draco – which she will ONLY refer to them in such a way in her mind when she is by herself – are near perfection. Too bad their personalities completely mess the entire package up. But then again, there are some girls who find their arrogance attractive.

Just not her. Of course not. Hermione knew better plus she had to deal with every day and appeared to be a target for it.

Every. Single. Day.

She paused for a moment as a thought crossed her mind. Doesn’t it seem odd that they have to taunt her every day? Sometimes it almost seems as if they were going out of their way to find her-

That is a ridiculous thought! Now she was desperately grasping for any sign that they may find her attractive as well… hoping that they find her attractive and that maybe she had a shot…

She gave a frustrated groan as she tossed off her sheets, giving in to the fact that there will be no more rest this night. This is insanity. She usually isn’t like this. Hermione cannot even give a good reason of why she is thinking about those- about those-those… twats! She almost wanted to beg that this was just a phase and that she would get over it eventually. Soon. Yes, she will get over this phase soon and she can just move on with her life and focus on a man that is deserving of her attention. Until then, she must try to not think of them.

She sighed once she confirmed the time. She would have been waking up in two hours which means everyone else is waking up in three (or more depending upon who you are referring to). She considered different things to do this morning at this time, and concluded that she might as well get dressed in her uniform. That way she didn’t have to change twice in one morning – because there was no way she would walk around Hogwarts in only her pajamas.

Knowing this was her best choice but not wanting to be awake right now, and certainly not for the reason she was up, she slowly got herself ready and accepted that this would be her fate for the day. Affirming her resolve to not think about two certain Slytherins, she checked her appearance in the mirror and grabbed her bag. She was ready for the day. Hermione thanked the heavens for whoever thought of ‘the other door’ as she went to go use it.

The ‘other door’ is the door that leads from the meeting room to her room. But it wasn’t a normal door – it cannot be seen unless the ‘looker’ knows where it is. The Head Boy has one of these doors as well that leads to his room, but she never watched him enter or leave so she doesn’t know where in the meeting room it is located. Besides, it isn’t like she wanted to get into the Head Boy’s room anyway. She only uses this door to get into the meeting room early to prepare for the discussions and any complaints the prefects may have. Then she leaves the same way everyone else does.

And this morning it seems the best course of action would be to go into the meeting room. Seeing as the whole castle is sleeping, there wasn’t really anywhere else she could go or she would risk bothering or waking someone. She has a few things she wanted to read but recently she has been… “easily distracted” in her room – where thoughts of the dreaded duo plagued her the most – and if she wanted to go into the common room, there was a high chance that she would soon be interrupted. To clear her mind, she really wanted to be able to focus on something else.

And the meeting room seemed perfect to be alone for some reading.

Hermione grabbed a quill, one piece of parchment, and two books and placed them in her bag. She wasn’t one to use this bag often – though she wasn’t quite sure as to why – but she wanted to be able to pack up and have a quick escape if needed. She didn’t want to be questioned by her professors about what she was doing there so early in the morning.

Finally reassured that she had all she needed, she opened the door and peered in. A little dark hallway greeted her as she entered and closed the door behind her. “Lumos.” Candlesticks lit her way. She smiled at the fact that these candles have never melted and she stashed the thought of researching for the spell as she walked towards her destination. She turned the knob slowly and checked the room to make sure she was alone. The room appeared to be empty so she entered and placed her bag on the table. She took a deep breath as she closed the door behind her, enjoying the comfort that this room offered. She lit enough candles to giver herself read but kept the rest of the room dark so no one would come inquiring as to why she was here.

She got out one of the books she had grabbed and finally sat down. Smiling as she placed it in front of her, she got a little excited to read the story that was about to unfold in front of her. Feeling as if she’d finally get over her predicament, she didn’t notice the slightly moment from a dark area in the room nor was she ready for the chuckle that came from the darkness.

She gasped and slammed her book shut out of surprise. “Who’s there,” Hermione asked aloud, hoping she was just hearing things. As a response, the figure brightened the rest of the lights. She wanted to panic as the first thing she noticed was his sly grin.

“Zabini?”

Unlike Hermione, Zabini had chosen to stay in his pajamas. A comfortable shirt that showed off his body yet covered him at the same time, while staying cool with short sleeves. His sweat pants were a rich green, loose, and baggy: the ultimate comfortable yet sexy look Hermione had ever seen. She gulped as her eyes darted across his appearance, knowing she was in trouble now.

“You okay Granger,” he asked as he looked her over, noticing the uniform. “Do you sleep in that thing too?”

Her mouth felt as if she was gaping but she quickly snapped to the situation and his question. “No,” she answered quickly. “I-I-“

“Just felt like randomly coming here?”

“I couldn’t sleep,” she confessed.

Zabini paused and gave another _smirk_ as if he knew something. “And why couldn’t you sleep?”

“None of your business,” she snapped. It was a defense reaction at this point. She was beginning to worry because he was getting closer to her and she didn’t notice that she had been backing up until she felt the wall behind her. There was a hitch in her breath as she started to feel trapped. Her eyes may have widened a little bit, but all of her focus was apparently still on him.

“You seem to be… stressed.” He stopped moving as he studied her reaction. He resisted to reach out and address the hair strand that had landed on her cheek.

“I’m not stressed,” she lied. “You just gave me a freight.” She wanted to celebrate the fact that she sounded so calm and controlled the exact opposite of how she was feeling. “What do you expect Zabini? It’s early morning – even I’m usually not awake this early – and it was dark. I thought no one else was here. I didn’t even hear your door-“

“Because I was here before you,” he politely interrupted.

This made her pause. “What,” she finally managed but could not help but sound surprised, as sense of dread came over her. Oh no. Oh please God no.

“I saw you come in Granger. I was here first. Which means-“

“You know where my door is,” she finished for him, her voice a whisper.

He nodded his head as he crossed his arms and leaned against the table – a very similar pose to the one in the potions classroom. “Doesn’t that worry you?”

_Yes_. “No, why should it?”

“Well,” Zabini started with a malicious smirk, “I can now sneak into your room whenever I want.”

Oh God, no. She did not need to feel paranoid about this as well. Wait – no he wouldn’t. There was no way he would. “Why would you do that?”

He raised an eyebrow in response.

And that was enough to send Hermione’s heart beating very quickly. No, that would mean – and her current feelings – and maybe he really WAS – “No… no… you wouldn’t-“ but her eyes showed her panic as she kept glancing at her door. Suddenly Blaise was in front of her, his arms on both sides of her head, his hands and elbows against the wall. He was close to her. _Really_ close. She could feel his delicious breath upon her face-

God DAMNIT Hermione this was not the time!

“Hmmm,” Blaise – no no no, Zabini! - mused.

“Wh-what,” Hermione asked, trying to keep a calm appearance as she tried to figure a way to escape.

“I am beginning to think you may like this,” he replied, his eyes practically caressing her as that God-forsaken smirk still on his face.

“And what if I don’t,” she asked, spotting her opportunity.

“Of course you do-“ he started to answer, but was cut off when she suddenly dashed out of his arms and ran towards her door. She somehow managed to grab her bag before she flung the door open and ran into the hallway. She was going to keep going but realized that if he really wanted to, he could just chase after her and she would be in a worse predicament. She spun around and shut the door with her wand and casting the only locking spell that came to mind. She could hear Zabini laughing and her ragged breath as she slowly walked away from him, her back facing her own room.

“Don’t fight it,” he called out. She completely turned around and ran into her room, shutting the door immediately and rested against it. She dropped the bag as she lifted her hands to see how she was doing. Terrible according to how much she was shaking. She grasped her hands together as she slowly slid down the door and ended up sitting on the ground. Feeling the sturdy wood behind her helped her a little bit, but just the thought that maybe – just maybe – he did actually want to come into her room was sending a rush of different emotions. But right now, it just made her nervous.

She couldn’t help but laugh a little. Nervous, not scared, but nervous. No, she did not want him in her room. The idea that maybe one day he would-

But he wouldn’t. He may be an arse, but he wouldn’t just invade her room completely. But it still made her shiver. The main problem was what type of shiver was it giving her?

* * *

 

Draco and Blaise were sitting together in the Great Hall eating breakfast when Hermione finally managed to come down. She never realized that they watched her, but then again no one realized. They were good at hiding it. But this was a morning different than any other morning which caused Draco to nudge Blaise and actually subtly motion to the Head Girl. “Looks like she is about to pass out in her food,” he whispered as his eyebrow rose.

Blaise chuckled as he looked over to where Hermione was sitting. She was beside her energized friend, the Weasley girl, looking just about as lifeless as death.

“Wonder why she is so tired,” Draco remarked. This made Blaise’s sly grin appear as he put some jam on his toast and Draco noticed. The two Slytherins shared a look and their smirks were now identical.

“She mentioned not being able to sleep last night,” Blaise casually whispered, causing Draco to chuckle.

* * *

 

Hermione was out of it. That much was obvious. She was stirring her cold chocolate (which an hour ago would have been referred to as hot chocolate) when she sensed a change of attention onto her. She snapped her head up and looked over at the Slytherin table knowing what was probably going to greet her. And she wasn’t disappointed. Those two troublemakers were smirking _yet again_ – really, they need to learn another expression – and talking to each other. The others around them were taking this as a sign to not interrupt and continued as if it were a normal thing. And this irritated her! Even moments like this was causing her issues. They were the source of her problems and she was getting tired to being affected! She was glaring in their direction when Zabini made eye contact. Instead of backing down, she gave him a look as if questioning him and telling him to knock it off, whatever they were doing. He just gave her an innocent shrug as if to state that they were doing nothing wrong.

As if she would believe that. The thought made her scowl. She was caught up in her thoughts when Harry’s voice came through.

“What’s wrong Hermione,” he asked, bringing her back from her plans on different ways to hex those foul and scheming-

“Ah ‘ermione,” Ron interjected. He worked on swallowing whatever he was eating so that he wouldn’t hear another mention of ‘don’t talk with your mouth full’ before continuing. “Your face is beginning to resemble Crookshankes,” he managed, then managed to get another huge bite of breakfast. “Trust me,” little spickets flew from his mouth to the point that even he noticed so he paused to swallow again, “that’s not a good thing.”

Hermione’s glare was redirected towards Ron. “Sorry I’m not appealing to your eyes, but-“

Harry put his hand on her should while giving Ron a look to tell him to stop before he makes things worse. “All he meant was that you look like you are upset about something-“

“Well put,” Ron responded as the thought about it.

“-And we were wondering if there was anything we could do to help,” Harry finished, regaining Hermione’s attention. This made her smile, even if just slightly. She could always depend on Harry to try to figure out what she was upset about. He was always able to get some sort of clue or hint about her moods or what is going on while Ron, well, is Ron. But he was doing his best to show that he cares too. But this issue was something she was going to have to figure out and handle by herself.

This time she gave a full smile as she responded. “Thank you Harry, I just-“ then she noticed Malfoy and Zabini were closer together and deep in conversation. That shouldn’t have bothered her but they kept glancing at her-

Those bloody buggers are talking about her!

“That’s it,” she muttered completely forgetting for a moment that she was talking to Harry. She put her hands on the table to push herself up quickly earning Ron’s sound of surprise and Harry’s look of confusion. That’s right, she was talking to them. “Sorry,” she managed. “I just have to go figure out something,” she stated as she took a few calming breaths.

She tried to keep her composure as she walked toward the Slytherin table, ignoring the calls and rude remarks being made by Malfoy’s and Zabini’s housemates. She stood behind them, waiting for them to notice her. “You know, eavesdropping is considered rude,” Malfoy calmly stated while looking at Zabini.

“I need to talk to you two,” Hermione replied.

“Us,” Zabini asked, being the first one to actually look at her. He was trying to act some sort of innocent again and it just made her want to yell at him or hit him even. But she resisted the urge somehow.

“Yes,” she replied through gritted teeth.

“What for,” Draco asked, sounding bored.

“Reasons. I don’t want to talk about it here. Just come follow me.” She turned on her heal and left the Great Hall, not letting them respond. She waited for about five minutes, her arms crossed and her tapping in impatience, before the doors finally opened and the two ‘boys’ walked towards her. “About time,” she muttered as she looked up at them. “You took long enough.” She just wanted to get to the bottom of what they were planning. Or at least make sure that she was not involved in whatever they wanted to do. This was just too much right now.

“We just finished our drinks,” Zabini offered as a reply.

“What was so important that you had to drag us away from our breakfast? Usually I don’t dirty myself so early in the day, but you made it seem so important,” Draco drawled. “Besides Pansy was-“

Hermione held her hand up to cut him off. She did _not_ want to know what Pansy was doing that he was enjoying so greatly that he wanted to get back to. “I want to know what you are up to,” she interjected.

“What do you mean _Cara_ ,” Zabini asked as Malfoy leaned on a nearby wall.

The Italian word make Hermione pause for a moment. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, calming herself down. No, this was not going to affect her. She would not let him do this for she was the one in control of this conversation. “I meant what I said,” she started, and opened her eyes to face them once more. “You are doing – or planning – _something_ and I want to know what it is.”

“Granger, you always seem to be angry,” one of them replied. But for some odd reason, she wasn’t sure who. All she noticed was that she felt heat rising to her face. How did they know exactly what to say and when to irritate her?

“Ugh!” She wanted to stomp and knock some sense into both of them! “Whatever you two are up to, I have had enough. Enough, got it?” She opened her mouth to add more, but ended up throwing up her hands in frustration. They just- and she could not- and it just made her turn around to walk away. She was fuming and it was obvious, to their pure delight.

“You summoned us out here and you’re going to be the one stomping away,” Malfoy asked, the laughter obvious in his voice. Hermione didn’t reply not wanting him to have the satisfaction of getting another reaction from her.

It was a failed attempt, but at least they knew that she caught on to what they were doing. Kind of. Sort of. Not in the least – but she just-

She needed a break.

* * *

 

“Now I know something has happened that you have neglected to tell me,” Draco stated as soon as Hermione was out of hearing.

“I didn’t tell you about our ‘meeting’ this morning? Shame on me,” Blaise responded, laughing at the spot that Hermione just was. Oh, this was fantastic.

“You were about to, but the subject herself was standing behind us.”

“Ah yes. I must explain… I think we have it easier than we originally believed.”

Draco’s smile grew as he finally looked over at the Italian. “Oh, you have to tell me now.”

Blaise returned the grin and looked Draco directly in the eyes. “I think she’s already attracted to us.” He saw the recognition and understanding shine in the blond boy’s eyes and it shared the same excitement that he was experiencing. “Which means that what we have been wanting to do has gotten that much easier.” He looked back at the direction that Hermione had disappeared to. “It makes her perfectly in our reach.

Draco nodded, happy with the information as he started to head back to the Great Hall but froze at Blaise’s next statement.

“And I know where her door is.”

Draco chuckled as he turned to face his friend again. “Oh this does make things interesting.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to those who have been reading. I find the hardest part of this whole thing is Draco and Zabini. I kind of know where I want to go, but seductive Slytherins aren't the easiest to write. But I will keep trying. Hope that they truly do appeal to people somehow. Gah.
> 
> I will admit that I used a common ‘troupe’ for this ‘coupling’. But I love it, so it stays. ;D

Worry ate at her stomach as she thinks back on what just happened. Hermione was unsure of how she feels about the situation. She did what she aimed to do: she talked to Malfoy and Zabini. It may not have had an effect on the situation at all but there was a chance it could have made things worse for herself – and she was afraid it was the latter. She lightly bit her lip trying to figure out the next course of action.

But that wasn’t what was eating at her the most right it. It was her reaction to the two Slytherins. It wasn’t just dread filling her stomach. The fact that she was kind of… excited and feeling a little flushed that bothers her the most. Part of the reason she left in such a huff so quickly was because of how she was feeling around them. She was angry – that was obvious. They infuriated her and she just did not want to put up or have any of their trouble going on. She did not want to be involved which was the whole point she pulled them to speak to them. But what she didn’t prepare was the fact that they knew her every button and word and phrasing to get to her and have her react just the way they wanted.

What she hoped they didn’t notice was the other affect they were having. Because she half wanted to punch them but a huge part of her wanted to kiss them.

KISS THEM.

Something was clearly wrong with her and she just couldn’t get past it. Why couldn’t she just be over it and be done with this confusing lust and emotions that are bouncing around. And because of this whole thing, she needed to think of an excuse to tell Harry.

Great she had to lie to her best friends.

She started to consider what she wanted to say. Ron would probably believe almost anything so she wasn’t worried about he would react. Her issue was Harry. He actually pays attention and is able to read her and put things together. It was part of why she really loved Harry, but for moments like this it made things difficult. Hermione knew that he would ask about why she went over to the Slytherin table to talk to Malfoy and Zabini. Ron would too out of hatred of that house but Harry would actually inquire to find out a real reason. She could brush Ron off with something but not Harry.

She took a deep breath and tried to think of something logical. (Ha, logical in regards to Malfoy and Zabini? That seemed almost impossible now. Freaking bloody fantastic.) What about those two and her that would make sense-

Well, she could fall back on the whole ‘Head Girl’ thing and claim that she needed to talk business with Zabini and Malfoy tagged along-

No. There were too many flaws with that. First off if it was official Head Business, she would have forced Malfoy to stay behind somehow like she normally does with Harry and Ron. There goes that excuse. So she had to keep thinking. Can’t even pretend it was because of Prefect things because then Ron would have had to know something as well… so no there. Even if she were to say that it was just a Slytherin issue, other houses would still be notified.

She ran a few different reasons and possible situations, trying to see if Harry would believe/accept them, and many of them she had to cross out. Hermione could not even talk homework really because there was no reason that Malfoy would follow about that. It was hard enough to get that reason to work with Zabini. And why would she want their help anyway? So what if… wait. Homework. And for homework she needed books and she does a lot of research… but the project she WAS working on is no longer in progress because of the accident – that’s it! She could tell Harry that she needed to speak to them about the books that was ruined!

Hermione could not help but smile a little bit. It almost seemed like it was overacting, but it made sense for her. She would be furious about the situation and about how priceless information was ruined but she wouldn’t ruin her image as a Head Girl and set a poor example, so pulling them aside to yell at them so she wasn’t a poor example for others actually works!

That sounded a lot better. Enough to make her smile and feel a little better. There was that slight guilt that she would be lying to her friends, but to have a lie that wasn’t completely off was better than what she was currently going through. And best of all, Harry would believe it and not worry about her so much. She felt a lot lighter as she walked into the Gryffindor Common Room to get ready for classes. She couldn’t go back into the Great Hall but it was okay because she wasn’t hungry anymore anyway. She double checked she was ready and knew that Harry and Ron would be coming up soon to get their items as well. After being so tired and stressed earlier, to have this wonderful burden feel as if it was lifted off her shoulders – though probably just temporary – made her feel so much more awake and able to handle the rest of her day.

Hermione had more time than she realized so she triple checked her items. She was taking all advance classes so it meant that all of the professors were stricter about turning in homework and students actually having their supplies. History of Magic essay (which is still too long but hopefully her professor will let that slide), Herbology notes (which Neville has been wonderful to work with. He actually gave additional information that not even Sprout has covered! It won’t be on any of the tests, but the information would prove to be useful one day), Care of Magical Creatures book (which she was actually looking forward to this year), and-wait.

She shuffled through again to see if maybe she just missed it… but no. Where is the last part of her Potions homework? She could have sworn that she definitely saw it this morning and had it in the bag with everything else when she went to the meeting room to work… but… no. She froze. Did she grab it when Zabini surprised her? In her rush did she even make sure to put it back – please say she didn’t leave it in there when she ran from him… Oh Merlin…

Hermione started to worry seeing as she did not even want to _think_ about what happened this morning. She felt so vulnerable and just – no. She was finally happy and content and something like this had to happen? All she could think about when trying to remember was how close the Head Boy had been to her. His body tempting her as she resisted pulling him close, his breath seductively teasing her skin as his arms practically surrounded her-

STOP! NO!

She shook her head trying to get rid of those thoughts. She refused to romanticize what happen this morning. This will not do! She took another deep breath trying to sort her thoughts and think back to her true goal. What happened this morning in regards to her homework.

A desire to just touch him and see how he would have reacted. To look into his eyes and see if maybe, just maybe, he found her attractive. But her mind finally became reasonable as she escaped and she ran to her room-

Her room! Maybe her Potions homework was in her room. It may have fallen out of her bag while she was rushing around this morning to meet everyone for breakfast. After the whole event this morning, she had essentially hid in her bed while she tried to convince herself that Zabini was just being an arse and teasing her like he always does (even if this teasing is completely different from what he has done in the past). And in her thoughts she went from being early to being late.

_Yes, it just could be in my room,_ she tried to convince herself as she headed back up. Good thing she essentially decide to forgo breakfast after talking with them. Otherwise she would be having a lot more issues right now and be running late to class. Hermione opened her door and sighed at the comfort it brought. No matter what was going on, her room was her safe haven and it brought her some sort of peace and ability to sort out her thoughts. She barely looked around when she noticed something on her bed. She got a little excited as she headed over, thinking maybe she was just panicking and it was here the entire time! _I was worrying over nothing. Thank goodness._

She looked down and grabbed the paper – it was her potions homework! Things were finally good-

Another slip of paper gently floated to her sheets. She had a moment of confusion as she looked at it wondering what it was. She didn’t have anything else nor did she attach- she froze. That-that was NOT her handwriting. Her breathing started to speed up a bit but she did everything in her power to try to calm herself down. _No reason to freak yourself out Hermione. It’s just another paper. Maybe it got stuck when she set this down somewhere._

This was clearly not working as she noticed her hand shaking as she picked it up and prepared herself to read it. It should just be some random note or-

_Hello Granger,_ the noted started. Hermione sat her on bed and took a brief look around the room. Oh no. Please don’t…

_After leaving our little discussion in a hurry this morning, I noticed that you had left this behind. If it is what I think it is, you might want to make sure you don’t just leave this lying around. Don’t want to embarrass yourself in front of Professor Snape again do you?_

_You may also want to come back to the meeting room again later as well. I do believe one of your quills was left here as well and you don’t want to lose something that seems to write so smoothly._

_Sincerely,_

_Head Boy, Blaise Zabini._

_PS: I hope you don’t mind that I used your door Granger. It would have been more of a hassle to hand that to you during breakfast in front of everyone. They would wonder and question why I have it and that would not be good for your reputation._

She sat, stunned. After a moment she realized that she wasn’t breathing and had to remind herself to take air in and let it out. But it was hard to while she was staring at this note. And knowing what this note meant.

He had been there. He had been in her room. Blaise Zabini had come into her room after she had left for breakfast to meet up with Harry, Ron, and Ginny, using the door that had been hidden and connected her to the meeting room _and his room._ Which meant that he wasn’t bluffing. He really did know where her door was. And he was smart enough to know the counterspells to the locking spells she had use this morning. He could practically come in any time he wants if she didn’t figure out a good strong locking spell.

Oh God. This thought shot a moment of adrenaline in Hermione as she ran out of her room and down the steps. She somehow did it without stumbling but with as weak as her legs feel, she was surprised she wasn’t sprawled against the floor. But that wasn’t her biggest thought.

What was dominating her mind was: _How did she mess up so badly?_ She had always been so sure- but then again, she never really paid attention did she? She would just go there and think no one was waiting because she was normally the early one- what in the world was Zabini doing there so early? But then again why was she so worried about him coming to her room? It wasn’t like he would actually DO anything. Maybe he would pull a couple of pranks (probably not because he doesn’t seem to be immature like that) or try to freak her out (like he just did) but it probably would not be too bad. Maybe he’ll just use it to return her items or leave notes when he couldn’t reach her otherwise. Maybe he would just be responsible-

Her mind seemed to smack itself as being foolish. This is Blaise Zabini. Draco Malfoy’s best friend. A Slytherin. One of the most arrogant boys in school as well as one of the smartest. He’d use it to the best of his ability for his own purposes. Maybe something like black mail or slip the information to Malfoy so they could take advantage and hex her when she wasn’t expecting them. Her mind tried to think of what they could do, but she knew she wouldn’t. She could never tell what they were thinking anymore and that was probably the part that scared her most.

No. No. Something in her snapped. She is a strong independent woman and she would not just let this get to her like that! Maybe they wouldn’t do anything and they are doing this to freak her out! And she will not allow that to happen! This will not get to her. Of course not.

But that doesn’t stop the fact that she might be spending time sleeping with other girls in the Girl’s Dormitory for a little while.

* * *

 

Draco looked over to see his best friend looking rather pleased as he was reading his potions book. “First off, I have to ask why you are reading right now? We are about to have class – can’t you just wait until then,” he drawled.

Blaise chuckled as he continued to look at the book in front of him. “I like reading. It was either this or my Defense Against the Dark Arts since I do not feel like going to get a real book from my room.” He knew that there was another question so he just waited for Draco.

“Well, still doesn’t explain what you are so happy about. Even you don’t get this happy when learning about potions.”

Blaise looked up, a grin upon his face that told Draco that what he was about to say was definitely interesting. “I left… a surprise for our lovely Head Girl this morning and I am imagining what her reaction will be.”

Draco grinned as he sat a little straighter with interest. “I have a feeling that this is going to be good.”

Blaise nodded in agreement. “It is. You remember what I told this morning about meeting with Granger this morning,” he asked. Draco nodded, looking with curiosity in his eyes. Of course he remembered Blaise telling him this. “Well, you recall what I told you about the special Head Girl and Head Boy’s doors? I just made sure to confirm I knew where it was.”

Draco chuckled, nodding his head as he thought about all the different responses she could have had. “This is definitely useful. She may have to start being careful.”

Blaise smirked as he put his focus back on his book. “There is no way that she is ready for us.”


End file.
